# Punta Cana Resort



## 5by50 (Jan 1, 2000)

Hi all, I am typing from the resort. What a place. Sunshine and 85 degrees:fu .
I bought a three pack of Cohiba Robusto. Man what a nice cigar cigar. Creamy smoke, nice draw. I went into town and bought a bow of Vegas Robino and a bow of partagas. I hope I make it into the states with them. Anyone interested in a tasting these, send me a PM.:s 

All the best and see ya soon!!!!!!


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## P-Town Smokes (Jan 7, 2005)

WELL, HOPE A CRAB CRAWS UP YOUR SHORTS TO NURSE IT YOUNG IN THERE:r 
But I'm jealous, 32 and snowing here in P-Town. Your one lucky dog, enjoy the smokes.


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## MattK (Jan 2, 2004)

PM Sent 



5by50 said:


> Hi all, I am typing from the resort. What a place. Sunshine and 85 degrees:fu .
> I bought a three pack of Cohiba Robusto. Man what a nice cigar cigar. Creamy smoke, nice draw. I went into town and bought a bow of Vegas Robino and a bow of partagas. I hope I make it into the states with them. Anyone interested in a tasting these, send me a PM.:s
> 
> All the best and see ya soon!!!!!!


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## canadasmokes (Dec 20, 2005)

yeah its -14 here lol


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## pierce652 (Apr 1, 2005)

I didnt think they sold Cubans in the resorts of Dominican Republic?


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## IHT (Dec 27, 2003)

pierce652 said:


> I didnt think they sold Cubans in the resorts of Dominican Republic?


why wouldn't they? it's not puerto rico.
or did i just miss the sarcasm?


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## bigpoppapuff (Jul 5, 2005)

99% of what are supposed to be cuban cigars that are sold in the D.R. are fake...probably made in santiago,D.R.......


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## FpDoc77 (Nov 30, 2005)

Thats good to know.


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## MattK (Jan 2, 2004)

I was in the D.R. last month. I couldn't find Cuban cigars in any or the large hotels.


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## pierce652 (Apr 1, 2005)

IHT said:


> why wouldn't they? it's not puerto rico.
> or did i just miss the sarcasm?


I wasnt being sarcastic at all. I remember asking a similar question when I first joined and was told most were fakes and to find real cubans is next to impossible.

This info may have been incorrect, but that was my belief.


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## 5by50 (Jan 1, 2000)

I was concerned about fakes as well. At the Resort I saw the Cohiba's with the glass tops!!!:tpd: 

So I asked around, and took a bus into town, which was 10 minutes from the resort. Nice cigar shop with a personal hand roller. They didn't sell boxes of Cohiba's, but only the 3 box of robusto's. Once I lit it up and smoked it....wow. The creamy smoke, nice draw...It was no fake. I also aked the owner why he didn't carry the 25 box . He talked about the mafia and stuff like that. Remember the language was problemo.


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## bigpoppapuff (Jul 5, 2005)

i stand by what i said....and it was told to me by two people who i trust...manuel quesada from matasa and guillermo leon from la aurora.....small factories in the D.R. are closed on a somewhat regular basis for producing "cuban" brand cigars....if you enjoyed it,fine...but it probably or almost certainly was a fake....


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## 5by50 (Jan 1, 2000)

I disagree. The owner went to his house which is close by to his cigar shop and brought me back 1 Vegas Robino, which I am smoking right now and 1 box of hoya demonterey churchill. So maybe thats why he doesn't display them in his shop. Mostly Dom cigars were displayed at his shop.


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## 5by50 (Jan 1, 2000)

Here they are.......................


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## 5by50 (Jan 1, 2000)

more


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## 5by50 (Jan 1, 2000)

some more................


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## 5by50 (Jan 1, 2000)

finally


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## 5by50 (Jan 1, 2000)

and one more...................


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## Bruce (Dec 31, 1999)

there is a LCDH in the DR. So there are legitamate places to buy havanas.


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## IHT (Dec 27, 2003)

pierce652 said:


> I wasnt being sarcastic at all. I remember asking a similar question when I first joined and was told most were fakes and to find real cubans is next to impossible.
> 
> This info may have been incorrect, but that was my belief.


obviously you're correct, based on others' replies.
my thoughts were that they weren't illegal in DR. whether or not fakes are all over the place or not, i can't say. was only commenting that i don't see why they wouldn't be available there.


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## mosesbotbol (Sep 21, 2005)

I read somewhere, a while back... That it was illegal to import Cuban cigars to DR because it would hurt their tourist cigar trade. Everyone who goes to leave DR would leave with a box of cubans, not DR's as the Gov't would want. I know fakes are rampant their on cubans, so maybe it's true? One could still smoke Fuentes and Davidoff's (not sure the other big DR brands) and have a good vacation...


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## Bruce (Dec 31, 1999)

The thing about it that you cannot legally buy some the DR cigars that are produced there! Cigars like Fuente and Davidoff are produced in the Trade Free Zone and are for export only. I have heard from several people that have visited the Fuente Plantation that some of the most predominently faked cigars being sold are Fuentes.

So the comment above about havanas not being sold because they would hurt the tourist industry is not correct.


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## pinoyman (Jan 28, 2005)

5by50 said:


> and one more...................


Unicos! One of my Favorite vitolas.
Amigo the cigar tips looks a bit funny, How are they when you smoke it?
Glad you're having a great time.


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## mikey202 (Dec 29, 2005)

So..what I want to know is are these the real deal or what? I have no Idea from looking at the pictures and I never had anything ISOM


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## bigpoppapuff (Jul 5, 2005)

i'll stand by what i said...having asked 2 of the giants of the D.R. cigar industry....i believe they're fake...but people don't want to believe it.
i know that small factories are raided on a regular basis in the santiago area for making counterfeits...believe who you want....i'm in the industry and if those two guys who i asked (who happen to be close friends of mine) say that they're probably fake...that's good enough for me...


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## pinoyman (Jan 28, 2005)

I've got few boxes of VR Unicos but the boxes looks different.
Well, those are from 04 maybe they change the box design already.
http://www.clubstogie.com/photo/showphoto.php/photo/519/cat/500/ppuser/1689


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## 5by50 (Jan 1, 2000)

Maybe that is why the owner of the shop had to go to his house to get the boxes. Why he didn't have them at his cigar store??. Lots of Dom cigars at his store. I smoked both of these cigars that I posted. I have been smoking cigars for 20 years. These are cuban.


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## pinoyman (Jan 28, 2005)

5by50 said:


> Maybe that is why the owner of the shop had to go to his house to get the boxes. Why he didn't have them at his cigar store??. Lots of Dom cigars at his store. I smoked both of these cigars that I posted. I have been smoking cigars for 20 years. These are cuban.


That is all that matters Amigo, as long as you enjoy it.


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## dayplanner (Dec 11, 1997)

bigpoppapuff said:


> 99% of what are supposed to be cuban cigars that are sold in the D.R. are fake...probably made in santiago,D.R.......


This may well be true, as most of the cigars sold in the D.R. are sold on the beach, by local dudes who carry them in black plastic bags with handles. Others will stop you at the shopping centers and say, "Hey, you want some Cubans, man? I got some good ones at my friend's house. Come with me, I'll take you there."

Use your instinct and run from these people - as I hope you would if they approached you at home.

Also, as Mo would say, use your common sense at the stores...if it looks strange, priced really cheap, and they're giving you lots of samples to try out so you can smoke many different cigars while you shop, it's probably not a place you want to buy from.

However, having been to the D.R. and a variety of other Caribean islands, the real Cubans are easy to find: they're in the CIGAR stores, not the gift shops. Most island cities only have one, maybe two, HABANOS endorsed cigar shops, and these shops flaunt that designation. They will show their HABANOS order forms if you ask for them. These stores keep their cigars in walk-in humidors, the stock is almost always good, and the owners are very knowledgable. You can also test them by asking them to explain what constitutes a real box of Cubans. If they tell you it's a hologram, walk away.

So, to summarize: the best way to find a legit cigar shop on the islands:

1. Do some research before you go. Check here. Google it. You'll get an idea before you go.

2. Buy cigars from cigar shops, not gift shops. If the smokes are on a shelf next to the magnets and blue mountain coffee, don't buy them.

3. Ask questions to the retailer. Test them.

4. Watch the stock - you want lots of cigar boxes in a specialty store's walk-in humidor, not one or two under the counter.

5. Look at the price. Higher is usually better, assuming the above tests are passed.


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## colgate (Jan 18, 2005)

pinoyman said:


> I've got few boxes of VR Unicos but the boxes looks different.
> Well, those are from 04 maybe they change the box design already.
> http://www.clubstogie.com/photo/showphoto.php/photo/519/cat/500/ppuser/1689


I'm not buying that box of Unicos because of the sloppy caps/narrowness. Ditto the "Hoyos". Yeah they'll smoke you up with a throw down or two to get you in the mood then switcheroo.


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## SuperT (Oct 19, 2005)

bigpoppapuff said:


> i'll stand by what i said...having asked 2 of the giants of the D.R. cigar industry....i believe they're fake...but people don't want to believe it.
> i know that small factories are raided on a regular basis in the santiago area for making counterfeits...believe who you want....i'm in the industry and if those two guys who i asked (who happen to be close friends of mine) say that they're probably fake...that's good enough for me...


I concur.


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## SuperT (Oct 19, 2005)

pinoyman said:


> I've got few boxes of VR Unicos but the boxes looks different.
> Well, those are from 04 maybe they change the box design already.
> http://www.clubstogie.com/photo/showphoto.php/photo/519/cat/500/ppuser/1689


I have a box of Famosos that have the same box as your Unicos. The Famosos I have are an '04.


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## mosesbotbol (Sep 21, 2005)

Not only are you likely to find real Cubans in a fancy cigar store (LCDH, Davidoff, Dunhill, etc...) the fancy cigar store is generally cooler to go into, has better customer service, and a more memorable shopping experience. 

When I travel, I like to buy cigars from the most prestigious cigar stores in the city I am staying. Less chance of problems, especially when time is tight and you want to get it right the first time.


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## colgate (Jan 18, 2005)

5by50 said:


> and one more...................


Hey man if you don't mind answering, how much did you pay for the dress box of 25 Unicos in the DR?


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